Wool fat & Bees wax
Contents
Source, method of production, chemical constituents,
chemical tests, uses and adulterants of
Wool fat
Objectives
• At the end of this lecture, student will be able to
– Discuss the source, method of production, chemical constituents,
chemical tests, uses and adulterants of
Wool fat
Bees wax
Wool Fat
Synonym
Anhydrous wool fat, lanolin
Source
Waxy substance secreted upon the hairs constituting the
fleece of the sheep, Ovies aries
Family
Bovidae
Wool Fat –
Preparation
Method I:
• Raw sheeps’ wool – crude natural wool fat
First cleansing
process
• Water soluble part – steeping the fleeces in water
• Water insoluble part – removed by benzene, acetone or
suitable solvent
• Evaporated – brownish grease
Second cleansing process
• Removed by scouring the fleeces with soap and water
• Emulsion produced – acidified to separate the wool fat
• Fatty acids – removed as calcium salts
• Treated with acetone to separate the wool fat
• Acetone solution – evaporated to dryness – Crude wool fat
Method II:
• Scouring the fleeces with hot water
• Allow the emulsion to stand
• Impure wool fat rises as a cream
• Cleansed by repeated mixing with water
• Separated by centrifugation
Wool Fat
Description
• Yellowish, tenacious, unctuous solid
• Characteristic
• Bland
Standards
MP: 34-40oC
IV: 18-32
AV: not more than 1
SV: 90-105
Peroxide value: not more than 20
Solubility: Soluble in 99% alcohol (absolute)
Constituents
• Alcohols – cholesterol, lanosterol, agnosterol
• Lanoceric, lanopalmitic, carnaubic, myristic and a little
oleic, palmitic and cerotic acids
Chemical test
Sample + Chloroform + acetic anhydride + Conc. H2SO4, Deep
green colour
Uses:
As water soluble ointment base
Ingredient for many water soluble creams and cosmetic
preparations
Adulterants
Mineral fats
Animal and vegetable fats
Bees wax
Synonym
• Cera flava, cera alba, white bees wax, yellow bees wax
Source
Yellow bees wax is purified wax obtained from the honey comb
of the bees Apis mellifera and other species of Apis
Family
Apidae
Geographical source
Processed and commercially prepared in Italy, France and
India
Method of Preparation of
• Cappings, combs of honey comb – broken and boiled with
soft water
• Packed in porous bags and kept under water
• Wax oozes out, gets collected outside
• Debris and impurities – removed by scrapping
• Purified
• Process is repeated
• White bees wax – bleaching yellow bees wax.
• Hydrogen peroxide, chromic acid, ozone, charcoal,
chlorine, potassium permanganate etc
• Natural bleaching
Description
• Yellow or white colour
• Agrreable, honey like odour
• Soft to touch, crumbles under pressure
• Granular fracture
• Insoluble in water, soluble in hot alcohol, ether,
chloroform, CCl4, fixed and volatile oils
Standards
MP: 62-65
SG: 0.958-0.967
AV: 5-10
SV: 90-103
EV: 80-95
Constituents
Bees Wax
Myricin (Myricyl palmitate, 80%)
Free cerotic acid (15%)
Small quantity of melissic acid and aromatic substances like
cerolein
Chemical tests
Saponification cloud test
Melting point of fatty acids – 61oC to 59oC
Uses
Bees Wax
• Ointment, plaster, polishes, candles, moulds, cosmetics
(lipsticks, face creams), in dental and electronic industries
Adulterants
• Soild paraffin, ceresin, fat and wax of vegetable and
mineral origin, resin, soap, stearic acid, colophony, starch and colouring
material
Summary
Wool fat is a waxy substance from sheep. Constituents
include cholesterol, lanosterol, agnosterol etc
Wool fat is used as water soluble base in ointments, creams
and cosmetic preparations
Yellow bees wax is purified wax obtained from the honey
combs
It contains esters of straight chain monohydric alcohol with
straight chain acids